brettrobinson
New Member
Well if there is one part of Hume's piece that I agree with is that it would anchor the waterfront in the psyche of Torontonians. With only smaller Harbourfront events on the waterfront and the rare trip on a dinner cruise or to the island, there isn't much that draws the average Torontonian to the waterfront on a regular basis. Summer weekends it is busy but beyond that it is relatively quiet on the waterfront. If busses in Scarborough and Etobicoke made a convenient connection to a frequent ferry it would definitely bring year round crowds to the water's edge and therefore bring more retail and other amenities feeding itself in a loop. It wouldn't be the most efficient transit system though and perhaps there are better ways to draw people to the waterfront besides necessary transit connections. A waterfront east and west streetcar with connections to the Queensway line and Kingston Rd will do a little bit but it wouldn't force people out of the vehicle at the water's edge like a commuter ferry would. A waterfront building excercise perhaps, but I doubt it would be the best improvement if the goal is to simply provide quick and efficient transit.
Slightly off topic.... I was at the harbourfront last night for dinner and it was hopping!!! The restaurants were packed and there were tones of people mulling about enjoying the evening. So nice to see that people are attracted to the waterfront now. bit by bit it is getting better...